Topic: Loyal to DE dark soul but is 7th ed 3rd codex DE less competitive than ever?

[ArchonCryx]

I can't believe I'm seeing so little excitement over my favourite 40K race when we have such awesome models and a much richer background development....

Having picked up my first DE warrior in 1999 and deciding here was a villainous race I could become dedicated to, I've seen all the iterations of DE.

And after over a decade of complaining about our very thin/lack of fluff codex, it seems positively rude to criticise GeeDub for giving us 2 new codexes in the space of 3 years...

obviously the 2nd COdex rocked big time, and I cheerfully joined the Baron bandwagon, delighted to finally have proper use for some of my favorite models in the game (well, I liked their concept) and wow I just loved all the new minis...

ANd Razorwings... wow, they definitely rocked m world with an amazing model, and along with the void raven make up 2 of the best looking flyers GW have ever made.

We have truly awesome minis, nothing bland about the Dark Kin's modelling, especially when compared to boring power armoured dudes in their serried ranks...

The 2nd ed codex also breathed life into the Commorite fantasy. Instead of a vaguely evil place, we have a deeply grim environment from the heights of the tip of a spire scraped by skirmishing Hellions to the grim underworlds where Mandrakes rule... A place where a traitorious back-stabbing coalition of rival factions somehow cobble together enough grudging respect to venture out into realspace and sup of the souls of any living creatures stupid enough to fall in their path...

From Bloodrides to Wracks,  I could toss a dart at that codex to build a good competitive list...

It was amazing, DE were truly on everyone's lips. Gone were the days where I'd go to a tournament and be the only DE player in the room. Gone where the days when I knew the name of the player simply from sighting one of his DE models...

AT the cusp, DE arguably were one of the top 3 armies...

Now I'm no dreamer. I never thought DE's reign would last long enough to sate my soul hungry mini's insatiable appetites but the swift approach of 7th along with a hugely nerfed new codex cut us from a zenith to the depths of a nadir...in one quick/cruel blow. Is GW run by a Haemonculus who likes to tease and torture his most loyal servants?

We went from dartboard codex to "choose wisely".

Wyches disappeared entirely. Bloodbrides completely forgotton.

Nowadays it's Venoms, RJBs, and flyers...

At least I've tasted glory days, and nowadays tend to play more garagehammer than anything, so power level doesn't bother me personally...

But it seems such a waste of potential. Such amazing models. Real depth of character - tragic evil figures that simultaneously revolt and fascinate.

Always on the darkest night does dawn break brightest. Have we hit rock bottom at last?

I hear there's a new mini-game coming: set in a Commorragh Gladiatorial Pit, Wyches vs Hellions so the rumours suggest...

The recent faq which means we don't have to snap shot from fast raiders anymore (What in Commorragh's name did we have fast OT transports for if we needed to snapshot at speed?)

Could it be possible we have finally hit rock bottom and our fortunes will begin to rise? Is this our new version 3.5, the start of a new beginning?

Happy to hear any opinion, delighted even to just hear acknowledgment that there are still fans of my favourite Dark Kin out there. Mandrakes, waiting in the shadows... waiting to pounce once their blades are sharpened and the moment is ripe!

[Cavalier]

Hey Archoncryx. Sorry you are bummed out about the Dark Eldar at the moment. You hit on a couple of key things that I do agree with... you do have to choose wisely when building a Dark Eldar army. You can't just dart throw an army together like you can with the Eldar and compete against upper tier armies.

That beings said I think the DE are still a good solid army. Like you said, Venoms, Reavers and Razorwings are all very good to excellent units. But their are a number of other units out there are VERY good as well. Grotesques, Talos, Kronos are very good, the Corpsethief is excellent as is the Grotesqurie from the Haemonculus Covens. Not to mention the Realspace Raiders Detachment which allows you to cram as many Reavers as you can into your army.

I would hardly describe this as rock bottom though. I think armies like Orks and Chaos Space Marines (before the Traitor Legions) had been staring into a far darker abyss than the Dark Eldar.

The 7th ed book is more challenging and less characterful than the 5th ed book while their are quality niche units that are challenging but playable units to add to your force besides the excellent choices I mentioned above. Incubi, Beastpacks, Sslyth, Ravagers  True Born and even small objective holding units of Mandrakes all make for a good spread of quality units. Yes there are trash units like Hellions, Wyches, Wracks, Bloodbrides and some of the Court of the Archon choices suck... and while its a shame it doesn't make for a lost cause.

So we've got the following excellent choices: Venoms, Warriors, Grotesques, Reavers, Razorwings, Talos, Kronos, Grotesquerie, Corspe-Thief and Realspace Raiders. 

Mid-Tier Quality Units: Ravagers, True Born, Beastpacks, Incubi and on the edge... Mandrakes....

I'd say all in all thats a good spread of units that offer a great variety of play. If you are looking for tangible "proof" of their quality I'd highly suggest checking out Lawrence from Tabletop Tactics. He's an amazing painter and ultra competitive tournament player. He's won the No Retreat ITC tournament in Gibraltar three times in a row with his Dark Eldar, taking three different lists each time... even taking a tooled up Archon for fun. He's going to LVO this year and I will be rooting for him.

Vox Cast Transmission 13: No Retreat III Tournament Report - YouTube

I feel your pain on Wyches, Bloodbrides, Hellions and difficulty in running some of those mid-tier options but all hope is not lost! Check out Lawrence from Tabletop Tactics and some his fantastic Dark Eldar battle reports and you will see that while challenging a bit spammy to play Dark Eldar can still eviscerate opponents in the hands of a skilled general.



Take heart and keep on raiding good sir! Let me know what you think 

[Lord of Winter and War]

I don't think dark eldar are weak at all. A buddy of mine plays them at very competitive levels successfully. He recently came 2nd place with pure dark eldar at a 25 person tournament.

Dark eldar are fantastic at anything involving holding objectives or Maelstrom points (like most ITC missions), due to their numerous and fast objective secured units.

The biggest issue they have is kill points.

You should check out the Skardcast on YouTube. Skari is a fantastic dark eldar general, and I've not won a game against his dark eldar yet.

[Grand Master Lomandalis]

I don't think dark eldar are weak at all. A buddy of mine plays them at very competitive levels successfully. He recently came 2nd place with pure dark eldar at a 25 person tournament.

Dark eldar are fantastic at anything involving holding objectives or Maelstrom points (like most ITC missions), due to their numerous and fast objective secured units.

The biggest issue they have is kill points.

You should check out the Skardcast on YouTube. Skari is a fantastic dark eldar general, and I've not won a game against his dark eldar yet.

He used to play at my LGS before he moved up north.  I am haunted by what he has done to my Dark Angels over the years with his Dark Eldar.